A Christmas Gift for House
by The Fellow Marauder
Summary: Written as an Xmas gift for Nightskyetears. Cuddy and Wilson go Christmas shopping for the difficult to buy for diagnostician. Please R&R!


Disclaimer: I don't own the characters of _House, MD_; but, in some chance they go up for auction, I HAVE DIBS ON DR. JAMES WILSON!

"What about this color?"

Dr. Lisa Cuddy picked up an off-white cashmere sweater and held it up to her chest, waiting for Wilson's reaction.

Dr. James Wilson merely stared at her blankly.

"And... _who_ are we shopping for again?" He asked. Then, as an after thought, added: "You know- just to jog my memory."

Cuddy rolled her eyes at the oncologist. "House." She responded, sounding irritated as if being forced to participate in a child's game.

Wilson's blank, calculating stare continued. With his hands placed on his hips, he said, "So... the man who comes in wearing t-shirts beneath tacky blazers is going to get a two hundred and fifty dollar sweater?"

Annoyed, Cuddy sighed in disgust. Dropping the sweater to her side, she glared at her friend and co-worker. "He deserves to wear something nice."

"_Deserves_?"

Cuddy rethought her previous statement. "Okay, so maybe not 'deserves'. But if we got him something nice... maybe he would be more prone to wear more nice things."

Wilson's stare still continued. "Yeah," he scoffed. Giving in and feeling disgruntled with the circumstances she found herself in, Lisa tossed the expensive sweater messily into the display (getting a nasty look from an employee in the process). As the dark haired doctor stood there, glaring at Wilson, the male doctor shrugged in his defense. "What? It's more likely he'd make a nest for the sweater out of it for Steve McQueen. I'm just trying to save us from spending lots of money on a gift he'd hate."

"Well why don't YOU pick out something for him then?" Cuddy challenged, stepping by Wilson and walking past him. "I mean, you're his best friend; you're the one with the crush on him." At the last comment, Wilson's cheeks lit up like a Christmas tree. Taking a few seconds to regroup, he then followed after his boss.

"I can't chose anything for him." He stated.

"Why not?" Cuddy asked, walking out of Macy's and leaving the mega-store behind to enter into the rest of the mall.

"Because you've met the guy!" Wilson replied. "He's impossible to shop for!"

"But you're his best friend." Cuddy retorted.

Wilson laughed. "Yea. Like _that_ makes a difference."

Sighing heavily, Lisa stopped in the centre of the mall and turned to face James. Watching him for a moment, she growled softly beneath her breath in frustration. "So what are we gonna do?" A helpless shrug from her co-worker proved little help and only made Cuddy more annoyed. "Let's just get him a gift certificate."

"A gift certificate?" Wilson repeated.

"What more do you want?" Cuddy snapped. "It's three days before Christmas and we still don't have anything to give House. Everyone else has a gift and House has _nothing_. Although... I'm not sure why he's getting anything in the first place. I mean, wasn't there some thing somewhere that says bad boys and girls get coal or something...?"

"He'd feel left out if he didn't get anything."

"What is he? Four years old?"

Again came the Wilson noncommittal shrug. Cuddy rolled her eyes. "Then suggest something. What are we going to get House?" The two stood in silence for several minutes as many shoppers floated and pushed around them to get to and from place to place. Eventually, Wilson came up with the answer.

"I have no idea."

"Gift certificate?" Cuddy suggested.

:...gift certificate." Wilson agreed.

_Two days later... Christmas Eve..._

"Wow. This is really nice. Thanks, Cuddy. Thanks, Wilson." Cameron smiled, fingering the beautiful snow white scarf that she was given to her for Christmas.

"Yea, thanks guys." Foreman agreed, looking through the various CDs that he got.

"Thanks a lot." Chase continued the tradition. Meanwhile, in the corner, House was looking at his own gift. Looking over at the duo of Cuddy and Wilson, he looked disappointed by his own present.

"This is _it_?"

Cuddy eyed him dangerously. Wilson sighed softly and rolled his eyes, reminding himself that he had expected that reaction all along. "What's wrong with _'it_'?" Cuddy snapped. "That's a hundred dollar gift certificate to _Borders_. I don't think that's a horrid gift."

"No," House agreed. "But they all got something special; something supporting their personality. All I got was some money on a _card_? Why not get me cashmere? I really like cashmere." And with that, the great Dr. Greg House made his exit from the diagnosis room into his own personal office. Wilson looked up at the ceiling to avoid looking into the fiery eyes of one Lisa Cuddy.

_Finito_.

Merry Christmas everybody!!


End file.
